The Bet
by Hayleekins
Summary: A night of drinking leads to Lily and James challenging each other to a bet. The task: prank the other with the best, funniest, or most clever prank you can think of. The reward: The possibilities are endless. James has a reputation for pranking, but not-so-goody-too-shoes Lily has some clever pranks up her sleeve. May the best prankster win.
1. Preface

Everyone knew that Lily and James were probably the most talented spell casters in their year. Then again, they had the most experience with jinxing each other. James and his friends were rather proud of their prankster reputation, and the whole school knew that while Lily may rival James' spell work, no one could surpass the Marauder's pranking abilities.

"Evans, I know you enjoy imagining you can do everything," Sirius said, hiccupping. He refills his goblet and takes another large swig of whiskey. "But seriously, and I should know because I'm Sirius, you can't match my amazing prankabilities!" He boasted, chuckling slightly at his pun. A doe-eyed girl nearby laughed with him. Lily just shook her head at him.

"I don't imagine I can do everything," She said defiantly, stealing his cup and draining it. "I know I can. And I know that if I put my mind to it, I could out prank any Marauder."

"Come on Lils," James said, leaning against her. "I mean yes, you're freaking fantastic with a wand," Someone whistled in the background, but James waved them off. "But if there is one thing that a Marauder can do, it is maraud! And I'm pretty sure that means we are the pranking masters." Lily swatted James away from her and grabbed her goblet.

"_Repleo_," She said, pointing her wand at the goblet, which refilled itself with whiskey. She downed the glass in one large sip. "Do you want to bet?" She asked, leaning far too close to James. He stared at her, his eyes dilating as he looked at her lips and their proximity to his.

"Oh Evans," He said softly, finding it difficult to meet her gaze without turning red. "I don't think you want to do that. We Marauders prank lightly, but as soon as a bet is in place, we are ruthless."

"Well, I am not betting the Marauders. I'm betting you, James Potter." Her voice was more of a purr than anything. James was beginning to think very impure thoughts.

"I'm the most competitive of us all." He warned, moving even closer to her. Sirius had lost interest in the conversation a long time ago and turned instead to whisper into the ear of the doe-eyed girl. Remus watched Lily and James with amusement, not sure that they realized how close they were getting to each other. Their faces were inches away, and Remus wouldn't be surprised if they ended up snogging by the end of the night. That, or getting into a shouting match of course. He turned away from his two friends to go talk to Serena Swan.

"Do you remember how competitive I am Potter?" She asked, looking at him through her eyelashes. "So, do we have a bet?"

"You're on Lily Evans," He hummed, gaze flickering between her eyes and lips.

"I'm going to enjoy beating you Potter," She said, smiling and biting her lip. James was practically drooling.

"Hey Mooney," James called, not taking his eyes off Lily. Remus groaned and apologized to Serena before going over to where James and Lily were making out with their eyes.

"Yes Prongs?" He was not nearly drunk enough to handle a drunk Lily and a tipsy James.

"I need you to write something down for me. I need to make sure Evans here remembers this promise when she sobers up." James still refused to take his eyes off Lily. She wouldn't look away either. Remus had a bad feeling about this.

"Is this something Lily's going to regret when she wakes up tomorrow?" He conjured a piece of parchment and a quill anyways, wanting to hurry and get back to his date.

"Oh yes," James said hastily. "She challenged my honor Mooney. We can't have this. She challenged me to a prank war." Remus groaned loudly.

"No, I say this is a bad idea! We do not need you two trying to kill each other again. You guys are talking to each other, you guys are friends, and you're practically making out in the middle of the common room. Please don't make us suffer through more fighting."

"It's not fighting silly Rem." Lily said, finally tearing her eyes away from James to look at Remus. "I said I could prank just as good as James or better. And I intend to kick his ass. I want to get it in writing so James can't back out when he realizes the mistake he made." Remus resigned and agreed to write out the terms.

"What are the stakes?" He asked, and James and Lily looked at each other again.

"I haven't thought about that," Lily said after a minute. "Honestly I just want to prove that I can beat James at his own game."

"But a bet needs stakes my dear Lily!" James cried, and screwed his face in concentration. Lily took the opportunity to refill both of their goblets. "How about, if I win, you have to streak naked through potions class." James looked smug.

"Is that just an excuse to see me naked James Potter?" She said, her face turning a shade darker.

"Lily!" He said, sounding outraged. "Yes, yes it is."

"Okay how about this," Remus interjected before this got out of hand. "Whoever loses owes the winner a favour. It can be anything that the winner decides, as long as it doesn't completely violate the loser. Deal?" The two thought it over for a moment before both agreeing to the stakes. Remus had both of them sign their name on the parchment and then rolled it up and slid it into James' knapsack sitting on the nearest chair. Seeing how everything was settled, Remus turned back to find Serena.

"When I win," Lily said, sounding cocky. "I'm going to make you wear a miniskirt around school."

"Oh you'd like to see me in a miniskirt wouldn't you?" James said coyly.

"I would!" A voice shouted from across the room. It was Sirius, who had tuned in to that part of the conversation.

"Oh Padfoot you've seen me in sexier outfits than that!" James called back with a grin, and Sirius barked laughing.

"The red thong was my personal favourite." Sirius said with a wink. James blew him a kiss in response.

"Hmm I change my mind, I think I know what my favour will be when I win." Lily's words pulled James' full attention back to her. His intoxicated imagination had him thinking dirty things.

"When I win, I'm going to kiss you." He said softly, leaning in close to her again. Their faces were so close, his breath was hot on her face.

"So you're going to wait to kiss me until this war is over?" Lily teased. "Well I guess you're never going to kiss me." James couldn't tell if it was a taunt or a challenge. His mind couldn't fully process the consequences, and found himself leaning even closer to her. Lily closed the distance between them, but only barely. She brushed her lips against his, almost completing the kiss. James was fully ready to deepen the kiss, but Lily pulled away.

"_If_ you win this bet," Lily said coyly. "You'll get your kiss." With that, she stood up unsteadily and turned to go up to her dorm. She sashed her hips and James couldn't help but stare with longing. She had _almost_ kissed him, and that alone was enough to get him physically and visibly worked up. He left the party quickly after that, his mind hazy with alcohol and Lily Evan's lips.


	2. Frozen Feet and Antlers

Lily stumbled up the stairs, eighty percent sure that she was going to trip on every step. Somehow she made it to her bedroom. It was mostly empty. The rest of the girls were downstairs still enjoying the party, but Lily was too busy giggling madly about her dramatic exit to care much. Plus, the alcohol was starting to give her a headache, and she was tired of the party scene.

"_Aniskey_," Lily said, trying not to slur, pointing her wand towards herself. She could immediately feel a cool sensation move through her body. She felt like a stream of cool water was coursing through her veins. The intoxication she had felt previously was draining out of her system. She smiled as she shrugged out of her clothes. She relished in the feeling of absolute aloneness. Being constantly surrounded by people could be exhausting, and this chance to be alone in her dorm made Lily feel _free_. She sighed, put her clothes away, and pulled out a pair of pajamas.

As she settled into bed, she thought about the drunken actions she had done earlier. "Oh hell," She muttered, rubbing her eyes. "I kissed James bloody Potter." That wasn't exactly true of course, their lips had barely touched, but it was enough. Her body was still coursing with electricity at the thought of it. It had been so hard to stop the kiss from going any further, but somehow she refrained. The look on his face had made it even more difficult. Lily sat up and shook her head. She had to stop thinking about this.

She thought about the bet instead. The alcohol had surely impaired her judgement when she challenged James, but she wasn't exactly ashamed of it. The idea of doing this was like giving James a little taste of his own medicine. It was all for good fun, and Lily tried not to think about what favour she'd ask of James when she won. She fell asleep thinking about miniskirts, favours and kisses.

James awoke with a dry throat and a pounding head. He turned away from the blinding sun peeking through his bed hangings. He groaned, running a hand through the mess of hair on his head. He reached out to grab his spectacles off his bedside table. Finally able to see clearly, he opened his bed hangings fully, grimacing at the sun. His bed was the farthest in the dorm, and he had a relatively good view of the other beds. Sirius, whose bed was beside James', was still fast asleep. James could hear him snoring lightly. Remus' bed was empty, but he couldn't see if Peter was awake yet. He stood and stretched, regretting it immediately. His stomach flipped and he thought for one horrifying moment that he was going to vomit. He didn't, thankfully. Instead, he moved to the shower, hoping the steam would help clear his heavy head.

He stripped his boxers off and stepped into the warm spray of the shower. The hot water certainly helped soothe his muscles and clear his head. He stood motionless, trying to absorb the heat. Remus loved to tease that he took forty-five minute showers, and James can't always refute that. He always felt the spray helped clear his mind and help him think. All he can think about this morning is the events of last night.

He had hoped that he had imagined kissing Lily enough last night to last him a life time, but he had been wrong. The sensation of her lips against his was enough to drive him mad, even eight hours later. Being in the shower made it worse than last night. Imagining her kissing him, holding him, pressing herself up against him so close he can feel every inch of her skin… He turned the tap to release cold water, shocking him out of his thoughts. He had to focus. He turned the temperature up and set to thinking.

Agreeing to a prank war with Lily was definitely a bad idea. No matter how close it got him to kissing her last night, he had a strong feeling that this whole ordeal would not end well. He should have listened to Moony. He and Lily were on good terms, _great_ terms last night, but if he got too intense in this prank war, he could risk losing that all together. He cringed at the thought of going back to fighting each other all the time. He sighed deeply. It was highly unlikely Lily would be willing to give up this bet. Plus, she'd tease the mickey out of him for backing out.

No, if this war was going to happen, he'd have to play very carefully. Like chess, he'd always have to make sure he was three steps ahead of Lily in order for this whole ordeal to turn out in his favour. He smiled to himself, starting to brainstorm while he washed up.

Lily avoided James for the rest of the day. It was Sunday and relatively easy to appear busy enough to keep a messy-haired boy at bay. She tried to stop her thoughts from straying to his lips and how _good_ he smelled the night before, but by that evening she caught herself staring off into space, charms essay completely ignored in favour of relatively explicit daydreams.

"Earth to Lily," A voice beside her murmured. Lily jumped in surprise, essay falling from her lap. She hastily picked it up, trying to hide her reddening cheeks.

"Hello Remus," She said, after righting herself. Her cheeks were still tinged with blood, but Remus pretended not to notice.

"Did I interrupt something?" He asked innocently. Lily glanced at him sideways, sensing a hidden mischievous tone. He motioned to the incomplete essay, as if that was what he was talking about.

"Oh no, I'm pretty much stuck for now anyways. I think I've been working too hard today, my brain is absolutely finished." She rolled the piece of parchment up and tucked it inside her bag.

"I'm surprized you were able to do anything today, given how much you drank last night." Remus said with a chuckle. Lily laughed along with him.

"Merlin, I'm so sorry about that. I'm pretty sure I spilled a glass of wine on you at some point!" Lily said, suddenly remembering other events from the party. She had been thinking too much about the last parts, she had almost completely forgotten about the rest of the night.

"No actually, that was Sirius. He was too drunk to realize last night, but once he figures out you're the one who stained his favourite shirt."

"Oh well, Sirius has enough favourite shirts to fill my whole wardrobe, I think he'll get over it." They both laughed at that. "I feel fine though. I drank more than I intended to, but I discovered a nifty sobering spell that always insures I don't get hangovers the next morning. I'm surprised you boys haven't figured it out already."

"I'd be willing to bet one in our ranks has discovered it for himself. Sirius always boasts that he never gets hung over, no matter how much he drinks. None of us can figure out his trick to be honest. I just figured that he's drank so much that his liver just basically gave up and let him have full control." They both laughed at that, and settled into a comfortable silence.

Lily packed up her quills and inkpot, sliding them back into her bag. She settled back into the couch, letting her eyes close for a moment. She kept them closed even when Remus began speaking again.

"I know you drank quite a bit… I just wanted to see if you remembered everything from last night. I know you and James were both intoxicated, and you may not have meant what you agreed to…"

"Remus," Lily said, stopping him from going any further. "I remember the bet."

"I can get James to cancel the whole thing. I won't even make it look like you requested it, I can just say the bets off, witness' orders." Remus said intently, surprising Lily with his resoluteness.

"I don't want to cancel the bet," She said, and a look of surprise crossed Remus' face. "Rem, I know what I'm doing. You don't think I can take James? I've been taking him for the past five and a half years."

"That's what I'm worried about Lils," He said, avoiding her eyes. "Listen, you guys are finally on good terms. Don't you think that's something worth preserving? I know you say you guys are just pranking, but I foresee it ending with you guys back at each other's throats."

"You should avoid divination," Lily said, standing up and shouldering her bag. "Your foresight is really rubbish." She smiles and makes to go up the staircase.

"Hey Lily," Remus' voice stops her before she can ascend. "James is my best friend. He's done more for me than I could have ever imagined when I first came here. I don't want him getting hurt again." His face was grim. Lily looked at him with an unreadable expression.

"Me neither." She said softly, turning away and quickly climbing the stairs.

Monday morning, both James and Lily were ready for this competition. They both seemed to be sitting on the edge of their seats, waiting to see who would strike first. Lily had some trepidations about the upcoming events. Remus' words were echoing in her ears, and she suddenly wondered if this was a good idea after all. At breakfast, James grinned widely at her.

"Oi Evans, are you ready for today?" He said, his smile spreading infectiously onto Lily's face. She tried to stifle it to act innocent.

"I was born ready Potter." She said sweetly, sitting beside him and swiping a piece of bacon off his plate. His face contorted into one of mock anger.

"How dare you steal off of my plate? That's it, I was going to go easy on you Evans, but no more!"

"Good," She said, her voice low. Only James could hear her next words. "I like it hard." His mouth gaped open, but no sound came out. Lily had to use every ounce of her willpower not to burst out laughing at the look on James' face. She turned away so he wouldn't see her grin.

"Morning Lily! Um, James, are you trying to catch flies?" Alice Wood asked, sitting down across from Lily. James shut his mouth quickly, still looking wide-eyed at Lily. She ignored him.

"Morning Alice," Lily said cheerily, finishing buttering the piece of toast she picked up. "Pleasant sleep?" She winked at her friend, causing her cheeks to flush. Lily knew that Alice had a habit of sneaking into the boys' dorm to spend the night with her boyfriend Frank.

"It was fine." She said awkwardly as Frank approached the table.

"Fine?" He asked, giving his girlfriend a side glance. "Should I be offended?" The smirk on his face gave Alice a good reason to shove him. He smiled and ruffled her hair.

"I reckon Mr. and Mrs. Longbottom here are the only ones who haven't heard yet." Sirius said from the other side of James. Alice's blush deepened and Frank's ears turned very red.

"Heard what?" Alice said, trying to brush of his remark.

"Evans and Prongs have got themselves into a little competition." He said with a smirk. It was Lily's turn to blush slightly. "You two were probably too busy snogging to see the little lovebirds Saturday night." He couldn't get any further before James punched him in the arm. Alice and Frank looked back and forth between James and Lily, waiting for an explanation.

"I bet Potter that I could out-prank him." Lily said, sounding more confident than she felt. Sirius belly-ached about his sore arm in the background, but no one was paying attention anymore.

"Oh Merlin Lily!" Alice exclaimed, throwing her hands up. Her short dark hair was still ruffled from Frank, which completed the look of a madman. "You're really bloody stupid, you know that." Lily was surprised at how angry Alice sounded.

"Thank you!" James said cheerily. "See, even your best mate thinks that I'm going to beat you!" Alice glared at him, and Lily could tell that wasn't what Alice meant.

"I'm talking about the fact that Lily is about to ruin absolutely everything." Alice sounded exasperated, but Lily only rolled her eyes. Alice had been on Team Lily and James ever since last year. Of course she would assume this prank war would ruin that.

"Don't worry, I'm going to kick James' sorry arse and then this whole thing will be settled." She smiled, finished up her toast, and then stood up. "Walk me to class, Alice my dear?"

Alice finished the rest of hear breakfast quickly, kissed Frank on the cheek, and then followed Lily. The girls linked arms as they trooped out of the hall.

"So, care to tell me what this 'prank war' is all about?" Alice asked after they had moved a safe distance away from prying ears.

"It all started Saturday. James and I had quite a bit to drink. I don't know how it happened really, I was pretty drunk. Somehow I ended up betting James I could out prank him." She paused, considering telling her about the kiss. "I was seventy-three percent sure he was going to snog me, bloody hell." Alice stopped dead.

"You two _snogged_?" Her voice was borderline hysterical. Her face broke out into a huge grin, and she looked like she wanted to jump up and down, squealing with delight.

"We didn't snog!" Lily protested. "We may have slightly kissed, but it was just the slightest bit of contact!" Alice's face darkened.

"Why. Didn't. You. Bloody. Kiss. Him?" She hollered, hitting Lily lightly for emphasis. "You wanted to snog him right? You've been thinking about it ever since, haven't you?" Lily refused to answer. She started walking again, hoping to hide her flaming cheeks. "You have! I _knew_ it!" The triumphant grin was back on Alice's face, and she hurried to catch up to Lily. "So, is this whole prank thing an attempt to get him to ask you out again?"

"Merlin _no_." Lily was the one who sounded exasperated again. "I don't want to start all that up again. He hasn't done anything elaborate to publicly ask me out aka embarrass me in over a year, I really don't want to go back to that! This bet isn't about dating, it's just for a bit of fun."

"It's a bet then?" Alice asked, quirking her eyebrow. "So, what does James get if he wins?" The memory of Saturday came back to her again. _If you win this bet, you'll get your kiss._ That was what she told him wasn't it?

"I suppose he gets a kiss," Lily said quietly. Alice made an excited noise that sounded like part train whistle and part squeak. "The actual stakes are that the loser owes the winner a favour of the latter's choosing. I told James if I won I'd make him wear a miniskirt." Both girls giggled about that.

"So, do you have any ideas?" Alice asked excitedly.

"Of course I do. I'm Lily Evans, I have a plan for absolutely everything." She grinned mischievously, unknowingly resembling her competitor's signature grin.

James would be the one to officially start the pranking. He had been fretting about it since Sunday morning, and decided he'd let Lily choose the pace. He'd start off with something simple. He waited until after lunch, when they were all headed to transfiguration with Hufflepuffs. Lily looked like she was glowing. She loved having classes with the Hufflepuffs, mostly because it meant two of her other close friends were in the class with her. Stephanie Larkin and Rubella Prewett were walking with Lily and Alice. Steph was in the middle of telling one of her wild stories when James found the perfect time to strike.

He flicked his wand quietly, and watched as the spell took its toll. Lily's feet stayed rooted to the ground. She stopped abruptly in the middle of the hallway, her friends walking passed her for a few steps. They were so involved in Steph's story that no one really noticed she hadn't followed. It was Alice who finally turned around to give Lily a strange look.

"What's wrong Lils?" Alice asked, and the rest of the girls turn to look. Lily looked down at her feet slightly perplexed. She swivelled her body to try and see James standing a few steps behind her.

"Really Potter, _gelesco_?" James was worried she was annoyed. Instead, she grinned. "I thought you weren't going easy on me?" She winked at him before giving the counter curse and catching up with her friends. James watched her go with a smile. He paid very little attention in Transfiguration that day. He was too busy planning the next prank. If she thought that was going too easy, then he'd step it up a notch for her.

The last class of the day was Care of Magical Creatures with Ravenclaw. James loved having this class as the last, mostly because on the way back up to the castle they got a beautiful view of the sunset. He positioned himself discretely behind Lily in order to perfect this next prank. He watched her laugh with Alice, throwing her red hair over her shoulder, and James had to admire this beautiful view. He shook his head lightly, trying to concentrate.

Professor Kettlebern had started the lesson. It was a rather boring lesson, and James had no intention of paying attention. He pointed his wand at the back of Lily's head and quickly whispered _cervifors_. He watched in amusement as Lily began sprouting antlers out of her temples. They started off as small stumps but rapidly grew larger. Thirty seconds later, Lily was sporting a full head of antlers. As they grew, they knocked into the students on either side of Lily. Alice was on her left, and cried out in surprise. Peter was on her other side, and the force of the antlers growing nearly knocked him right over.

Lily screamed in horror, feeling the newly grown antlers sprouting from her skull. Professor Kettlebern looked over in surprise, and then upon seeing the girl with the antlers, stumbled back into the crate of dung beetles. He cried out, and a few Ravenclaw boys went and helped him out. Most people were looking at Lily though. She turned around quickly to look at James, knocking Alice and Peter once more. Her expression was almost deadly.

"Sorry, too hard on you?" James said timidly, and was relieved to see the grin that Lily was fighting. Sirius was at his side and knocked elbows.

"Hmm, fitting." He said with a wink at James. He felt his cheeks colouring and he tried to shrug it off to Lily. Her expression remained confused.

"Okay really funny James," She conceded, still feeling the horns. "Now, can you please cast the counter curse?" The smile fell off of James' face. He hadn't thought about that. Damn it, _why_ hadn't he thought about that? "James Potter, you better cast the spell to remove these antlers right this minute." James shifted uncomfortably.

"Should I escort you to the hospital wing?" He asked quietly.

"Bloody hell James! How could you not know the counter curse! That's just, that's just not right!" She yelled, panic etched into her face.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" He said quickly. "I'll take you to the hospital wing, come on!" Lily agreed reluctantly, still slightly fuming. They walked back to the castle together. "I am really sorry Lily." He said quietly after a minute. "I didn't think…" To his surprise, Lily started laughing.

"I can't deny that was a good trick." She said between giggles. "You turned me into a deer!" She laughed again. James, remembering Sirius' comment, chuckled softly. "I can't believe you wouldn't think to look up the counter curse. It's almost like you're just trying to get some alone time with me." She said coyly, winking. "Me and these big antlers." She added, laughing.

"If I wanted to get you alone I wouldn't need to give you antlers." He said, pushing her softly. She laughed, and pushed him back, knocking him with her antlers accidentally. "Oww," He complained loudly. "Man I really didn't think this prank out that well."

"Nope, and that's exactly why I'm going to win." Lily said smugly. The two walked together in a comfortable silence the rest of the way to the hospital wing. Madame Pomfrey gave a loud cry when Lily appeared in the doorway with a full set of antlers, and James quickly explained what happened. The matron sighed deeply before going to get Professor Flitwick to come up with the counter curse. Within the hour, Lily's head was back to normal, and she was more than grateful for that.

That night Lily finally decided which prank she'd retaliate with. She had confided in Alice, and she thought it was brilliant. She fell asleep excited for breakfast the next morning.


End file.
